Subjective and object focus of the comparison "I - Other" in the process of social perception
Psychology
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17072/2078-7898/2019-3-331-344Keywords:
social perception, focus of perception, relation to the Other, valence of the object of perception, similarity with the object of perceptionAbstract
The influence of subjective and object perceptual focus on the expression of the phenomenon of positive bias in favor of the self under conditions of comparison with a "good" and "bad" object at different levels of subjective awareness of similarity with it was investigated. It was hypothesized that positive bias in favor of the self would be higher in the case of subjective comparison focus, negative object valence, and low level of perceived similarity to it. The study included 314 students between the ages of 18 and 30 (M = 20.23, SD = 1.59), 79 males (25%) and 235 females. In the first phase, participants answered questions on the Short Questionnaire of the Dark Triad. In the second phase, they were shown a videotaped interview with a perceptual subject, during which he or she answered the same test questions. At the third stage, participants were asked to evaluate their overall subjective resemblance to the interview subject, their general attitude toward him, the degree of certain positive and negative qualities he exhibited, and their or his superiority in these qualities. The characters of the stimulus interviews were two students of different genders, studying for a degree in "Acting Art". During the interviews, they answered the questions of the Short Questionnaire of the Dark Triad according to the key, playing the roles of "good" and "bad" people. Statistical processing of the results was performed using comparative analysis using Student's t-criterion and two-factor ANOVA (repeated measures method, mixed design). Perceptual focus was found to be a key implicit factor in strengthening and weakening bias in favor of self: with subjective focus bias increases and with objective focus bias decreases. The positive behavioral valence of the object (the image of the "good Other") provokes a cognitive conflict of perception, which manifests itself in a statement of equal superiority over it in both negative and positive qualities. The conscious statement of similarity with the object of perception does not lead to a weakening of positive bias in favor of the Self, which can be seen as evidence in favor of the weak influence of conscious regulation on the socio-perceptual process.References
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Zárate, M.A., Stoever, C.J., MacLin, M.K. and Arms-Chavez, C.J. (2008). Neurocognitive underpinnings of face perception: Further evidence of distinct person and group perception processes. Journal of personality and social psychology. Vol. 94, no. 1, pp. 108‒115. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/0022- 3514.94.1.108
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